Furnace and allied structure.



U. WEDGE.

FURNACE AND ALLIED STRUCTURE. APPLICATION FILED JAN-12,1914: RENEWED APR. 27,1916.

Patented D9012 3 SHEETS-SHEET I- INVENTOR WITNESSES Y W E N R YA E LS MW V! B U. WEDGE.

FURNACE AND ALLIED STRUCTURE.

APPLICATION FILED JAN-12, 19M. RENEWED APR. 27.1916.

Patented Dec. 12, 1916.

3 SHEETIS-SHEET 2.

U. WEDGE.

FURNACE AND ALLIED STRUCTURE. APPLlCATlON FILED JAN. 12. 1914. RENEWED APR. 21. I916.

Patented Dec.1 2,1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3- I I I I I I I II C M III-IE2 IEI'AILIL EIIILIL C INVENTOR UTLEY WEDGE BY ms ATTORNEY UTLEY WEDGE, 0F A RDIVIOBE, PENNSYLVANIA.

FURNACE AND ALLIED STRUCTURE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 12, 1916.

Application filed .lanuary 12, 1914, Serial No. 811,773. Renewed April 27, 1916. Serial No. 94=,051.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, UTLEY WEDGE, a citizen of the United States, residing in Ardmore, Pennsylvania, have invented certain Improvements in Furnaces and Allied Structures, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to construct a furnace, drier, evaporator, cooler or like structure (hereinafter, for convenience, termed a furnace) in such manner as to provide for the simultaneous conveyance therethrough and treatment therein of different kinds of material without admixture, an object which I attain in the manner hereinafter set forth, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view of a metallurgical furnace of the circular, superposed-hearth type, constructed in accordance with my invention; Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view on the line aa, Fig. 1, but on a smaller scale; Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view on the line b b, Fig. 1, also on a smaller scale; Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 1, but on the same scale as Figs. 2 and 3 and illustrating a modification of my invention, and Fig. 5 is a horizontal sectional view on the line 0-0, Fig. l.

Referring in the first instance to Figs. 1, 2 and 3 of the drawing, 10 represents the outer wall of the furnace and 12 a central vertical shaft contained therein and having rotating movement imparted to it in any desired manner, as for instance by suitable gearing arranged below the furnace and meshing with a bevel wheel 11 at the lower end of the shaft 12.

The furnace may have any desired number of hearths, that shown in the drawing having five hearths numbered consecutively from top to bottom, these hearths being supported upon the outer wall 10 and having central openings for the reception of the central rotating shaft 12 which is provided with projecting rabble arms 13 carrying appropriate rabbles 14: for stirring and feeding the material deposited upon the hearths.

Each of the hearths is divided into a plurality of zones and has openings through which the material can pass from a zone of one hearth to the corresponding zone of the hearth below, thus, the hearths 1, 3 and 5 have openings w adjacent to the center of.

each hearth and other openings 3 adjacent to the periphery of each hearth, while the hearths 2 and 4: have openings w disposed intermediate of the central and peripheral portions of the hearths.

The rabbles 14 are so disposed upon the rabble arms 13 as to feed the material in opposite directions over each hearth, thus, the rabbles which cooperate with the hearths l, 3 and 5 feed the material inwardly over the inner zones of said hearths and outwardly over the outer zones thereof, whilethe rabbles which cooperate with the hearths 2 and 4 feed the material inwardly over the outer zones and outwardly over the inner zones, the openings w serving as discharge openings for the inner zones of the hearths l, 3 and 5, the openings 3/ serving as discharge openings for the outer zones of said hearths, and the openings to serving as discharge openings for both the inner and outer zones of the hearths 2 and 4.

The roof 15 of the furnace has therein openings 16 and 17, the opening 16 feeding material to the inner zones of the hearth 1 and the opening 17 feeding material to the outer zone of said hearth, and the materials thus separately fed to the different zones of the hearth 1 are kept separate in their passage through the furnace, each traversing only its respective zone of each hearth.

In Fig. 4 I have illustrated the application of my invention to a modified type of furnace in which the material is fed radially on the inner zones of the hearths and circumferentially on the outer zones thereof, thus, the rabbles cooperating with the inner zones of the hearths 1, 3 and 5 feed the material outwardly thereon to the discharge openings 3 while the rabbles cooperating with the inner zones of the hearths 2 and 4- feed the material inwardly thereon to the discharge openings w, the material which is being fed circumferentially over the outer zone of each hearth being fed through an opening w therein onto the outer zone of the hearth below, these openings being so disposed, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 5, that the material will fall through the open ing w of each hearth immediately behind the corresponding opening of the hearth below.

Where single openings '00 are employed in connection with the outer zones of the hearths the material will be caused to travel the entire length of the zone before falling onto the hearth below but where a lesser amount of travel is desired the openings in the outer zones may be increased accordingly so that the material Will only travel said zone.

from one opening to the neXt before passing onto the hearth below.

"theiterm unit. instead of the term zone 'to indicate the hearth division.

here it is desired to impart a higher degree of heat to the material during the later portion of its travel through the furnace than during the earlier portion of said travel the lower hearths of the furnace may be provided With heating chambers 20, as shown in Fig. 1, to which products of combustion may be supplied in any suitable manner, as for instance from a fireplace 21 at one side of the furnace, these products of combustionafter traversing the chambers '20 ofthe hearths escaping therefrom through suitable outlet lines 22.

'As an instance of one of the uses of my invention, 1 may note the subjection to the same treatment of different classes of material, one fed over the inner zones of the furnace and the other over the outer zones, or the material fed over one of the zones may be acted upon by a gas or gases generated from the material fed over the other zones,

,a'sfor instance by combustion of fuel, or by chemical reaction of two or more substances.

I claim: 7 1. A furnace having a hearth presenting a plurality of charge-receiving surfaces side by side and each with its own outlet, means for feeding charges to each of said surfaces independently, means for moving the charge over one surface from feed point to outlet in one direction, and means for moving the charge over the other surface from feed point to outlet in another direction.

2. A furnace having a circular hearth presenting inner and outer charge-receiving surfaces each with its own outlet, means for 'moving the charge outwardly on the inner surface from feed pointto outlet, and means for moving the charge inwardly on the outer surface from feed point to outlet.

3. A furnace having a series of superposed hearths each presenting a plurality of charge-receiving surfaces side by side and each with its own outlet, means for feeding charges to each of said surfaces independently, and means for moving the charges in- UTLEY \VEDGE.

Witnesses:

KATE A. BEADLE, HAMILTON D. TURNER.

l eiiieii of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,-

Washington, D. 0. 

